Permanent Space Colonies Are Closer Than You Think
This is what it could look like for us to leave Earth behind
Most people imagine the distant future of humanity like an episode of Star Trek. Queue the cheesy music and hip-hugging space suits. The starship Enterprise is blasting bad guys with its photon torpedoes and settling space colonies that further expand the borders of a thriving United Federation of Planets, teeming with alien civilizations.
But the reality is that our future may not be tied to planets.
Because all of us were born on a planet, we suffer from a deeply ingrained “planetary bias.” Earth has been humanity’s womb, so we naturally expect to settle another spherical body. We think that new horizons are broached with “one small step for man” on a new habitable planet — whether that be Mars or some yet-undiscovered planet that aligns with humanity’s desired ecosystem.
But even though life evolves on planets, celestial bodies are not the best long-term option for supporting technologically advanced civilizations due to their limited resources.
Based on scientists' current interpretation of the laws of physics, the best option for establishing a permanent place for humanity may be something called a rotating habitat.
